Slides from #CannabisJournalism talk at Longmont Startup Week

Below are the slides and the text from the slides. I’d love to follow up with any who attended, or anyone who is interesting the normalization of cannabis. There are many threads to follow when it comes to this topic, and I am always game to talk shop.

Part-time Teaching Professor of Digital Journalism at the University of Denver (@mfjs_du)

Take aways
Things We’ll Talk About Today
Brief History of Cannabis in America
Normalization via the media
Opportunities and challenges here in Colorado (especially Longmont!)
Journalists & outlets to follow

Cannabis in America

USA: Legal Cannabis 2017

60%
2016 Gallup Poll
The majority of Americans continue to say marijuana use should be legal in the United States
12% in
1969
2017
Highest percentage of support recorded in 47-year trend
Favoring legalization is up among all age groups in the past decade
Large majorities of Democrats, independents favor legalization
When Gallup first asked this question in 1969, 12% of Americans supported the legalization of marijuana use. In the late 1970s, support rose to 28% but began to retreat in the 1980s during the era of the “Just Say No” to drugs campaign. Support stayed in the 25% range through 1995, but increased to 31% in 2000 and has continued climbing since then.

$6. 7B
2016 revenue from U.S. legal cannabis industry.
Projected to grow to $20.2 billion in 2021.
30% Growth in 2016. Forecasting ~25% growth YOY.
“You will not find another multi-billion-dollar market growing at 25 percent anywhere in the world that is not already filled with multi-national companies and institutional investors. That’s part of what makes the cannabis industry such a unique opportunity for investors and entrepreneurs,” said Troy Dayton, CEO of Arcview Market Research.

People in North America spent $53.3 billion on legal, medical, and illicit marijuana in 2016. That’s more cash than Americans spend in a year at McDonald’s and Starbucks combined.

2017 Stories
California & Nevada. Oh, and Canada.
The rest are all smaller fisher, but great threads to follow.
Federal Business Bills to Watch
/115th-congress/senate-bill/777

/115th-congress/house-bill/1810

Section 280E prevents cannabis producers, processors and retailers from deducting expenses from their income, except for those considered a Cost of Goods Sold (COGS).
26 U.S. Code § 280E – Expenditures in connection with the illegal sale of drugs
U.S. Code § 280E

70%
Effective tax rate for cannabis businesses.

Cannabis in Colorado

Timeline
From Prohibition to Normalization
Prohibition started in 1917

1937 Marihuana Tax Act
Upon inception, on October 1, 1937, the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and Denver Police Department arrested Moses Baca for possession and Samuel Caldwell for dealing.

Decriminalization in 1975
Followed a near decade-long wave of decriminalization across the country

Issue 300
The nation’s first voter approved social use initiative passed on November 8, 2016.
Yes 53.7%
No 46.3%
Denver City Ordinance

Issue 300 Challenges
Amendment 64 did not expressly permit cannabis consumption establishments, nor did it prohibit the possibility. Ultimately it is up to cities and counties to develop their own policies, and unfortunately elected officials have drastically misinterpreted Amendment 64 by claiming it broadly prohibits consumption anywhere considered “public.”
The Colorado Clean Indoor Air Act and many state indoor smoking bans prohibit both tobacco and cannabis smoking in most indoor areas. Some states also ban vaporization, and Colorado is likely following suit next year.
I-300 permitted locations cannot SELL cannabis, creating a “BYOC” model.
Determining appropriate consumption locations is the crux to most community concerns, particularly concerns about odor.